Pencil or pen with a moving point



Jan. 10, 1967 s. BENSON PENCIL on PEN WITH A MOVING POINT 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 15, 1965 Jan. 10, 1967 B. s. BENSON PENCIL OR PEN WITH A MOVING POINT 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 15, 1965 2m i I FiIL 6 Claims. 61. ran-45.6

The present invention relates to a marking device or hand drawing instrument having a moving marking surface or point, that is to say a point having a periodic motion of small amplitude as compared with the dimensions of the instrument.

This device, for example a pencil or a pen, which, when its drawing point is at rest, enables any continuous line (straight, broken, or curved) to be drawn in the ordinary way, has this essential characteristic that if its drawing point is set in vibration (the device being held fixed with respect to the support), the point describes in situ a small closed curve (for example a circle or a square), the continuous line which is obtained by operating the device by hand being then the resultant of the superimposition of two movements, namely the movement together of this device on the support of the drawing and the local periodic movement of the point, this continuous line having for example the shape of a coil spring if the local movement is circular.

The device according to the invention finds an intercsting application in the field of toys and games, since it makes it possible to produce easily amusing drawings, even possessing a certain artistic style. It will of course be understood that the invention is not limited to this field, and that its use can be contemplated in drawing offices in which it would enable the draftsmen to achieve an economy in time for drawing certain lines (for example to draw a solenoid in an electrical diagram). It may also be considered that the device according to the invention is an instrument for decorative marking and painting in general, on condition, of course, that its drawing point is replaced by a pyro-engraving stylus, or an air brush, respectively, or the like.

Generally speaking, the device according to the invention is a hand drawing instrument of any desired type and provided with any kind of point (ordinary pencil or ball point, with one or more colours, pen, stylus, nozzle, etc.), the essential being that this point is capable of being given a periodic motion.

More precisely, the present invention relates to a hand drawing instrument provided with a drawing point of any known type, the said instrument being essentially characterized by the fact that it comprises a drawing device properly housed in a casing or body and a driving member intended to impart to the drawing point an independent periodic motion with respect to the casing.

The drawing instrument according to the invention may further comprise means serving to cause the drawing-point to describe in its periodic motion a contour of welldefined shape, for example a square contour.

The driving device serving to impress movements on the drawing point is composed on the one hand of a motor of any desired kind, housed in the casing or external to the latter and, on the other hand, of mechanical members interposed between this motor and the drawing device.

The motor proper is preferably an electric motor supplied from a suitable AC. power outlet or from dry batteries, but it may be a motor of any kind (of the pneumatic type, an electro-magnet, etc.)

The mechanical members interposed between the motor proper and the drawing device are housed inside the casing or on the outside, or again partly inside and partly outside.

, United States Patent ice These mechanical members consist advantageously of an eccentric actuated by the motor and to which is fixed one extremity of the drawing device and a narrowed portion of the casing intended to guide this drawing device and to limit the amplitude of its movement and in consequence to limit the amplitude of the movements of the drawin g point.

These mechanical parts may also be constituted by a system of cables to which is given a rapid to-and-fro motion by the motor proper, and acting on a cam or a boss located in the vicinity of the drawing point and which impresses its periodic movement on the said point.

The means serving to compel the drawing point to follow a clearly-defined contour, consist advantageously of an end-guiding member fixed to the extremity of the casing in the vicinity of the drawing point and pierced with an opening having a given contour to permit the point to pass, this contour having any desired shape, for example square, round, diamondshaped or heart-shaped.

Other characteristic features and advantages of the present invention will be brought out from the description which follows below with reference to the accompanying drawings given by way of explanation but not in any limitative sense in respect of various forms of embodi ment of the invention.

In these drawings:

FIG. la is a longitudinal section of a drawing instrument according to the invention, the drawing point of which is a ball, and the motor of which, supplied from the power outlet, is housed in the casing;

FIG. 1b shows, in perspective, the end guiding member mounted on the extremity of the casing of FIG. in;

FIG. 2 shows the device according to the invention in course of use and shows the drawing obtained, consisting of a curve in the form of a coil spring;

FIGS. 3a to 3e show five examples of the outlines obtained with the instrument according to the invention, the outlines of FIGS. 3a to 3c being in the form of a coil spring and those of FIGS. 3d and 3e having been obtained by means of an end-guiding member pierced with a square orifice;

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal section of another form of construction of the drawing instrument according to the invention, of which the drawing point is a ball; this instrument is of identically the same type as that of FIG. 1a, from which it differs only by the fact that the motor is not housed in the casing and that it is supplied by dry batteries;

FIG. 5a is a longitudinal section of a third form of construction of the drawing instrument according to the invention, in which the drawing point is a ball; the motor is on the outside of the casing and the mechanical members interposed between this motor and the drawing device are constituted by cables acting on a cam or a boss which gives the point its vibratory movement; and finally,

FIG. 5b is a transverse section made in the instrument of FIG. 5a at the level of the said cam or boss.

In FIG. 1a, the drawing instrument according to the invention is shown as being essentially constituted by (1) A ball pen 1 housed in a casing 21 and provided with a fairly flexible rod so as not to hinder the movements of the drawing point 6;

(2) A driving device consisting of an electric motor 3 (shown diagrammatically by a rectangle) housed in this casing, and an eccentric 4, and

(3) An end-piece 5 or end guiding member serving to guide the drawing point which terminates in a ball 6. The motor 3 is connected to the electric supply mains by a lead 7. The casing is provided with a narrowed portion 3 at approximately the half-length of the pen 1, and the end-piece 5 is pierced with an opening 9 of square shape (shown in FIG. lb).

The operation of this device is readily understood: the user takes this appartus with his hand 10 and holds it almost vertically, as shown in FIG. 2, applying the drawing point against the sheet 11 on which he wishes to make the drawing.

When the motor 3 has been started-up, it turns the occentric 4 which drives in its turn the pen 1, causing the extremity 13 of this latter to describe a circle centered on the axis of the motor 3. Due to the fact that, at the level of the narrowed portion 8, the pen 1 is prevented from moving, it follows that the ball 6 must describe a circle. This would be the case in the absence of the endpiece which has the effect of impressing on the ball 6 a movement in the form of a square, which enables for example the outlines of FIGS. 3d and 3e to be obtained.

In the case of FIG. 2, the appartus does not comprise any end-piece and in consequence it draws a line in the form of a coil such as 12, and enables the outline of FIGS. 3a and 30 to be obtained.

In FIG. 4, the instrument according to the invention only differs from that of FIG. 1a by the fact that the motor 3 is not housed in the casing 2 and that it is supplied not from the AC. power source but by means of dry cell batteries, shown diagrammatically at 15, the unit comprising the motor and the batteries being housed in a box 16. A flexible cable 14 transmits the rotation of the motor 3 (arrow F1) to the eccentric 4. The operation of the pen 1 is exactly the same as that of the pen of FIG. 1a.

Due to the fact that the motor 3 is not housed in the casing 2, the latter may be of smaller dimensions than that of FIG. 1a and for that reason it is more convenient to handle.

In FIG. 5a the motor 3, as in the case of FIG. 4, is outside the casing 2 and is housed in a box 16.

Instead of being formed by the eccentric 4 and the narrowed portion 8, the mechanical members interposed between the motor 3 and the pen 1 are shown, in the case of the form of embodiment of FIG. 5a, by two cables 17 and 18 which are given an alternating movement (arrows F2, F3) which actuate two projections 19, 20 acting on a cam or boss 21 carried by the rod of the pen 1 in the vicinity of the drawing point 6. At least one restoring spring 22, 22a or opposing spring is fixed to the casing 2.

The motor 3 drives a cam 23 on which slide the extremities 24 and 25 of the cables 17 and 18.

The operation of the dravw'ng instrument of FIG. 5a is as follows: the user takes-up the instrument as shown in FIG. 2; when the motor 3 has been started up, it rotates the cam 23 which acts alternately on the extremities 24 and 25 of the cables 17 and 18. The latter in their turn move alternately the projections 19 and 20 which actuate a cam or boss 21 carried by the rod of the pen 1. These projections 19 and 20 are arranged at right angles, as shown in FIG. 5b.

Each of these projections in its to-and-fro movement acts on the cam or boss 21 and moves the pen 1 laterally and in consequence its drawing point 6, by a small amount. As soon as a projection has ceased to act on the cam or boss 21, one of the restoring springs 22, 22a or opposing springs brings back the pen to its initial position. The projections 19 and 20 act alternately on the pen 1, so that the drawing ball 6 carries out alternately on the sheet small movements perpendicular to each other. The pen 1 may be pivotally mounted on the casing 2 at its extremity 13 opposite to the marking surface or drawing point 6, but it is also possible for the pen 1 to be simply mounted inside the casing. In this case, it is essential that its rod should be fairly flexible so as not to hinder the movements of the drawing point 6.

It will of course be understood that the present invention has been described above by way of explanation only and not in any limitative sense, and that any modifications of detail may be made thereto without departing from its scope.

The examples described and illustrated are concerned with ball-point pens, but it is clear that the invention is applicable to any hand drawing instrument (for drawing pyro-engraving, painting with a spray-gun, etc.).

In the case of the application of the instrument according to the invention to the field of toys, it may be envisaged to supply the drawing instrument with a box having a flat surface intended for making drawings, this surface comprising, when so required, similar to a number of toys of known type, a device for rapidly rubbingout the drawings.

This surface may also be subjected to vibrations which are additive to those of the drawing point and make the toy more attractive.

It will be clear that, irrespective of the destination of the instrument according to the invention, the mechanical members interposed between the motor and the drawing device and serving to vibrate the drawing point (ballpoint, pen, stylus, nozzle, etc.) may be of any desired kind.

I claim:

1. A marking device for use in applying decorative markings on a surface, said device comprising a housing having a bore therein, a marking element positioned in said bore, said marking element having a marking surface on one end thereof, first support means supported on said housing, said support means movably supporting said marking element within said bore at a point remote from said marking surface, projection means supported on said housing projecting radially inward in said bore, said projection means pivotally supporting said marking element by contacting the periphery of said marking element between said marking surface and said first supporting means, power means associated with said housing for moving said marking element, and guide means mounted on said housing adjacent said marking surface, said guide means including a noncircular aperture defined by wall means contacting said marking element and confining pivotal movement thereof by said drive means for applying noncircular decorative markings to the surface.

2. A marking device according to claim 1 wherein said guide means is removably mounted on said housing and is adapted to be replaced by other guide means confining movement of said marking element in a different manner.

3. A marking device according to claim 1 wherein said marking element is elongated in shape and is of a flexible construction and said first support means includes eccentric drive means supported on said housing and connected to said power means for eccentrically driving said marking element.

4. A marking device according to claim 1 wherein said projection means includes at least two cable means movably supported in said housing and connected to said power means, each of said cables having a projection element on an end thereof for contacting said marking element adjacent said marking surface for moving the same.

5. A marking device according to claim 4 wherein said marking element includes radially outwardly projecting cam means, said projection elements on said two cable means are perpendicularly related and contact said cam means, said cable means are radially flexible and longitudinally movable by said power means, and further including spring means connected to said housing urging said marking element to a central position within said bore.

6. A marking device for use in applying decorative markings on a surface, said device comprising a housing having a bore therein, an elongated marking element positioned in said bore having a marking surface on one end thereof, cam means projecting radially outward of said marking element adjacent said marking surface, first 5 6 support means supporting said marking element within References Cited by the Examiner said bore at a point remote from said marking surface, at UNITED STATES PATENTS least two cable means positioned Within said bore radially outwardly of said marking element, said cable means 807,299 12/1905 Marshall 15-42 X supported on said housing for longitudinal movement 5 2,539,436 1/1951 110st 259 138 relative to said elongated marking element, projection 219111718 11/1959 cuevas 30 272 means fixed on one end of each of said cable means, 3:026347 3/1962 Anderson 1209 said projection means projecting radially inwardly of, 3159359 12/1964 Rasmussen 1522 and adapted to contact said cam means, power means associated with said housing for moving said cable means FOREIGN PATENTS longitudinally of said marking element whereby contact 10 699,017 10/1953 Great Bn'tain.

of said projecting means with said cam means causes deflection of said marking surface, LAWRENCE CHARLES, Primary Examiner. 

1. A MARKING DEVICE FOR USE IN APPLYING DECORATIVE MARKINGS ON A SURFACE, SAID DEVICE COMPRISING A HOUSING HAVING A BORE THEREIN, A MARKING ELEMENT POSITIONED IN SAID BORE, SAID MARKING ELEMENT HAVING A MARKING SURFACE ON ONE END THEREOF, FIRST SUPPORT MEANS SUPPORTED ON SAID HOUSING, SAID SUPPORT MEANS MOVABLY SUPPORTING SAID MARKING ELEMENT WITHIN SAID BORE AT A POINT REMOTE FROM SAID MARKING SURFACE, PROJECTION MEANS SUPPORTED ON SAID HOUSING PROJECTING RADIALLY INWARD IN SAID BORE, SAID PROJECTION MEANS PIVOTALLY SUPPORTING SAID MARKING ELEMENT BY CONTACTING THE PERIPHERY OF SAID MARKING ELEMENT BETWEEN SAID MARKING SURFACE AND SAID FIRST SUPPORTING MEANS, POWER MEANS ASSOCIATED WITH SAID HOUSING FOR MOVING SAID MARKING ELEMENT, AND GUIDE MEANS MOUNTED ON SAID HOUSING ADJACENT SAID MARKING SURFACE, SAID GUIDE MEANS INCLUDING A NONCIRCULAR APERTURE DEFINED BY WALL MEANS CONTACTING SAID MARKING ELEMENT AND CONFINING PIVOTAL MOVEMENT THEREOF BY SAID DRIVE MEANS FOR APPLYING NONCIRCULAR DECORATIVE MARKINGS TO THE SURFACE. 